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Novel IT Application for Reverse Triage Selection: A Pilot Study

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 November 2017

Gwen Pollaris ,
Stéphanie Note ,
Didier Desruelles  and
Marc Sabbe
Gwen Pollaris*
Affiliation:
Emergency Department, University Hospitals of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
Stéphanie Note
Affiliation:
Emergency Department, University Hospitals of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
Didier Desruelles
Affiliation:
Emergency Department, University Hospitals of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
Marc Sabbe
Affiliation:
Emergency Department, University Hospitals of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
*
Correspondence and reprint requests to Gwen Pollaris, Emergency Department, University Hospitals of Leuven, Herestraat 49, 3000 Leuven, Belgium (e-mail: [email protected]).
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Abstract

Objective

The objective of this study was to develop and evaluate an evidence-based information technology (IT) application that guides clinical decision-making during the reverse-triage selection process in mass casualty incidents.

Methods

Based upon 28 validated critical interventions (CI) relevant for determining whether a patient qualifies for early discharge, we developed the Reverse Triage Tool of Leuven (RTTL). The RTTL is compatible with the health electronic record (HER) of UZ Leuven, a tertiary hospital in Belgium. During a 3-week period in March 2015, we registered data from 2 groups of patients: a random group (no RTTL usage) and a filtered group (RTTL usage).

Results

When applying the original 28 CIs, we were able to select almost twice as many patients in the filtered group who qualified for early discharge compared with patients in the random group. The predictive validity was highly satisfactory.

Conclusions

The RTTL saves time in 2 ways. First, it reduces the patient population that needs to be evaluated for potential early discharge to one-third. Second, it doubles the probability of selecting an actual dischargeable patient. Each selected patient, however, still must undergo multidisciplinary reassessment in order to qualify for early discharge. Thus, further research is required to optimize the IT application.(Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2018;12:599–605)

Keywords

reverse triageIT applicationsurge capacitydisastermass casualty incident
Type
Original Research
Information
Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness , Volume 12 , Issue 5 , October 2018 , pp. 599 - 605
Copyright
Copyright © Society for Disaster Medicine and Public Health, Inc. 2017 

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References

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